Time and Value
by QueenOfAshes
Summary: Ashlynn did not expect to find herself here, of all places, after she, her sister, and her best got into a severe car accident. Ashlynn just can't seem to keep herself out of trouble, can she? Plus, Ilia is no longer mute, so things are about to get much more interesting... first story in while, so please go easy on me!


**Okay, first story for the Merlin fandom. Sweet. I actually haven't written anything for FFN in a while, so bear with me. Um, I'm just going to lay a couple of ground rules (you're really gonna want to read them): 1. I don't accept anonymous reviews, so if you flame me, I will know who you are. 2. I'm not going to give a disclaimer every single chapter, just the first few and maybe a couple of times later in the story to remind you (although I doubt you'd need the reminder). 3. After this, I'm not going to give a big, long AN every chapter, only when I have major news. 4. If I reply to reviews, it'll be through PM, so I can save everyone else from the long AN. Finally, 5. I will do my best to update on a regular basis, but if I can't update soon, I will let you know, and get an update out ASAP.**

**So here I go!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Merlin, only my OCs (which ****_are_****, honestly, based on real people).**

**Chapter Dedication: meapzilla2mouse**

**Thank you, and enjoy!**

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_Location: __Unknown_  
_Date: Unknown_  
_Time: Sometime Early in the Morning  
__Ashlynn's Third Point of View_

This certainly was not the first time that Ashlynn had woken up somewhere other than where she'd fallen asleep (or passed out). It was, however, the first time she woke up in different _clothes_. By the time she regained consciousness, she could hear three distinct things: birds chirping, horses' soft whinnies, and hushed voices.

Blearily, Ashlynn opened one eye, then another. Standing over her were two women and four men. One woman, with delicate pale skin, wore an expensive-looking and very... medieval looking dress, the same color as her piercing blue eyes. The other woman, darker skinned, wore a simple yellow dress and apron. Three of the men wore shiny chain mail and bright scarlet cloaks, with swords at their sides. Knights.

The fourth man- only a boy, really, no more than eighteen- was more like the woman in the yellow, wearing simpler garments. Blue shirt, red scarf, brown jacket.

Guiltily, Ashlynn realized that her first thought hadn't been of her sister or her friend. Elizabeth and Ilia... where were they? Surely they weren't far... were they? Ashlynn scrambled to her feet, but almost toppled over, if it hadn't been for the strangers around her rushing to catch her.

"Whoa," one of the knights said. "You're safe." His accent was that of an Englishman.

"Hush, Sir Leon," the pale woman said. "By the look of her face, I don't believe that is her concern."

"What do you mean, my lady?" the other woman inquired. Ashlynn, however, had finally regained her balance, and took off running.

"Come back!" The strangers shouted, but Ashlynn ignored them. She began shouting herself.

"Elizabeth! Ilia!" she screamed. Her footwork was fairly uneven, as she was finding herself in the middle of a forest, and Ashlynn had to dodge massive tree roots and small animals darting to and fro. She continued shouting for her little sister and her friend. The strangers, who were much more familiar with the land, quickly caught up to Ashlynn, and two of the men grabbed her by the arms, holding her in place. Their grips were firm, but not painful.

"What is your name?" The third knight, a blond, asked. He seemed to be their leader.

"Ashlynn," she replied in a whisper.

"Alright, Ashlynn. What's wrong? How did you get here?"

"I- I don't know how I got here-"

"Your accent- it's strange. Where are you from?" the blond interrupted.

"Arthur," the pale woman reprimanded. "She's obviously distraught!" She nudged the knight, Arthur, out of the way and stood in his place. "Who are Elizabeth and Ilia?" She asked, much more gentle than Arthur.

"My sister- my little sister and my friend. Please, you have to help me find them!" Ashlynn sagged to her knees, and the two knights holding her arms let go of her.

Both women, though they were no older than Ashlynn herself, knelt before her.

"I'm Gwen," the second girl introduced, "and this is the Lady Morgana. Please forgive us all for being so rude as to not introduce ourselves sooner." As Ashlynn looked around, she noticed all four young men seemed sheepish, and muttered their own apologies.

"Now," Lady Morgana said, "how can we help find your sister and friend? What do they look like?"

Slowly, Ashlynn described her sister: small, dark hair and green eyes like Ashlynn's own, and the flame-patterned birthmark on her shoulder. Next was Ilia: tall, bright red hair, brown eyes, and rather sickly.

"Elizabeth is eight years old, and Ilia is my age- sixteen. Ilia is also mute, she was born that way." After a few moments of silence, a scream pierced the air.

_"ASHLYNN!"_

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_Location: Forest  
Date: Wildly Unknown  
Time: Sometime Early in the Morning  
Ilia's Third Point of View_

Ilia's day just kept getting weirder and weirder. First, a raggedy old homeless man tried to hijack her dad's car (which she totally did _not_ take for a joyride with her best friend Ashlynn and Ash's little sister. Definitely not), then she got into a _bit_ of an accident (also, she did _not_ swerve to miss a pair of wild turkeys in the road and, as consequence, hit dead straight into a lamp post), then she woke up in some strange forest (not her fault), and now she can _talk._

Talk, as in speak. Her vocal chords could vibrate and make _noise_. Ilia had _never_ been able to do that before. Ever. This she discovered when she involuntarily groaned. An actual noise escaped her lips, and Ilia had almost screamed, thinking she had woken up next to someone. But when she found herself completely and utterly alone, Ilia tried it out again. Simple vowels (she couldn't really explain how she knew what to do) such as aaaaah, and ohhhh, and ehhhh. After that, she began laughing uncontrollably. Peal after peal of insane, _audible_ laughter exploded in the otherwise silent air.

She began forming words (again, she had no idea how she knew what to do or how to do it). Anything that came to her mind, came out her mouth. "Toilet! Ice scream! Pantomime! Colonels!" On and on she went, for several minutes, until she had the idea to sing every song she knew. She started with the basic alphabet song, then moved on to the Star Spangled Banner, then to nursery rhymes. Ilia could not believe how miraculous this day was.

After nearly half an hour of nonstop talking and singing, Ilia realized that she might accidentally talk herself hoarse. She did _not_ want that. She clammed up, vowing to keep quiet for a few minutes every so often.

This was when Ilia heard a sound she didn't want to hear ever again: a scream for her best friend.

_"ASHLYNN!"_

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_Location: Forest  
Date: Unknown_  
_Time: Sometime Early in the Morning_  
_Elizabeth's Third Point of View_

Elizabeth was scared- no, she was _terrified. _Straight up, drop-dead, brain-freezing _terrified._ She didn't think she'd been this terrified since her dad died, and that was three years ago. At least then, Elizabeth had had her mother and older sister to comfort her. Now, Elizabeth was alone. Not to mention lost. Like, literally lost.

She couldn't help it as a few small tears slipped down her round, pale cheeks. Elizabeth may have liked to spend time alone, but only if she was inside, and there were other people at least in the house. Not this- this mind-numbing solitude in the middle of nowhere. She was most _certainly_ not okay with this. _Maybe,_ she thought, _if Ashlynn was nearby, I might be okay. But-_

Elizabeth's small train of thought was suddenly derailed by the biggest, blackest, hairiest spider that she had ever seen. She had never seen one even close to it (for which she was extremely grateful).

Now, Elizabeth wasn't overly fond of bugs in general, but spiders? She could never see one ever again and it would be too soon. So, naturally, Elizabeth did what any arachnophobic eight year old (or arachnophobic of any age, really) would do:

She screamed bloody murder for her equally-arachnophobic older sister.

_"ASHLYNN!"_

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**Okay, there we go. I hope you enjoyed my prologue! I've had this idea bouncing around for a while, and I've been dying to try it out.**

**See ya!**


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